This second part of the two Mesrine movies shows us the return of Mesrine to France, how he became the public enemy number one and how he was finally gunned down by the French police after two extreme decades of living on the edge of life.
The acting of Vincent Cassel as Mesrine is even more profound and insightful in this part as in the first one. The way he demands pardon for all the bad things he had done in front of his dying father or how his daughter meets him as he is imprisoned are truly touching events. The way how Mesrine is left alone by all of his partners and friends in the end and how his girlfriend acts after his death are also very intense and sad moments of the movie.
With the great and charismatic Mathieu Amalric that portrays François Besse, there is a new interesting character in this movie that forms an explosive and very diversified partnership with Mesrine.
The second part of the movie also adds a lot of absurd, dark and sometimes almost surreal humour in comparison to the first part for example when Mesrine and Besse try to cross a river, when Mesrine and another gangster kidnap an old millionaire or when Mesrine gives some of his strange interviews.
The problem I have with this movie is that it is somewhat repetitive. Mesrine commits a murder or theft, gets imprisoned and finally escapes and the circle begins again which is very predictable. Even though Amalric does a great job, I also miss some more memorable characters such as the ones portrayed by Gérard Depardieu, Cécile de France or Roy Dupuis in the first part.
Neverthelss, this movie is a truly solid and essential continuation of the first and better part of this masterpiece and portrays the final years of one of the most stunning gangsters of the twentieth century. Both parts are definitely worth your time and money if you like straight but still insightful gangster movies.
The acting of Vincent Cassel as Mesrine is even more profound and insightful in this part as in the first one. The way he demands pardon for all the bad things he had done in front of his dying father or how his daughter meets him as he is imprisoned are truly touching events. The way how Mesrine is left alone by all of his partners and friends in the end and how his girlfriend acts after his death are also very intense and sad moments of the movie.
With the great and charismatic Mathieu Amalric that portrays François Besse, there is a new interesting character in this movie that forms an explosive and very diversified partnership with Mesrine.
The second part of the movie also adds a lot of absurd, dark and sometimes almost surreal humour in comparison to the first part for example when Mesrine and Besse try to cross a river, when Mesrine and another gangster kidnap an old millionaire or when Mesrine gives some of his strange interviews.
The problem I have with this movie is that it is somewhat repetitive. Mesrine commits a murder or theft, gets imprisoned and finally escapes and the circle begins again which is very predictable. Even though Amalric does a great job, I also miss some more memorable characters such as the ones portrayed by Gérard Depardieu, Cécile de France or Roy Dupuis in the first part.
Neverthelss, this movie is a truly solid and essential continuation of the first and better part of this masterpiece and portrays the final years of one of the most stunning gangsters of the twentieth century. Both parts are definitely worth your time and money if you like straight but still insightful gangster movies.